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Wonderful Breastfeeding Statistics

Hi everyone,

My midwife gave me a locally produced breastfeeding magazine this week. I am constantly amazed by the wonderful breastfeeding statistics I come across. This week I found out that breastfeeding can reduce a woman with a family history of breast cancer's chance of suffering from breast cancer by 59%. This statistic comes into play for women who breastfeed for 3 months or more.

Thanks for sharing that statistic. My surgeon told me that breastfeeding reduced the chance of breast cancer but he didn't have the actual percentage to share with me. When I learned this I was even more eager to start my family.

My mother breastfed me for 13 months and my sister for at least 13 months - maybe longer. She got breast cancer when she was 40, and her Grandmother had breast cancer too. I knew that my risks were fairly high, so I decided to make every effort to reduce those risks... including breastfeeding for as many months/years as I could.

I'll be 49 years old next month and no sign of cancer. I breastfed my first baby for only a year, but the other 4 were breastfed for 2-3 years each. I avoid pesticides and household cleaners and paint fumes and chemicals whenever I can because my mother was exposed to a lot of that on a daily basis, and I know they can all cause cancer.

My mother's diet was also high in animal fat (i.e. butter, cream, cheese) and she loved to refinish furniture and redecorate the walls of our home with paint or vinyl wallpaper, all of which out-gass for long periods of time.

It's so important to avoid chemicals whenever possible and breastfeed for as long as possible - good for mum... good for baby!